Patients can access NHS ADHD assessment via a GP referral to secondary care. Due to the significant waiting time for assessment, some patients are opting to have an assessment done privately or via ‘right to choose’, and expecting any monitoring or prescriptions recommended to be provided by their NHS GP.
ADHD medications can only be prescribed under specialist initiation and supervision. There is a shared care protocol within the NHS to allow prescriptions initiated within the NHS to be provided in a GP setting while the consultant’s clinic remains responsible for all the assessments, dose regime and monitoring of both physical and mental health responses to this medication. No standard shared care agreement is in place with private/right to choose health care, and as such, we as GPs are not able to prescribe the ADHD medication in this situation.
A patient will need to have been seen and assessed within the NHS secondary care service before being considered for a shared care arrangement and prescription from the practice.
Please bear this in mind when considering accessing a private assessment.